OSCOLA Referencing Examples: 32 Examples for Cases, Statutes and Sources

If you study law in the UK, you will almost certainly be asked to reference in OSCOLA — the Oxford University Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities. It is precise, footnote-based and unforgiving of small errors, and markers notice mistakes quickly. This guide gives you OSCOLA referencing examples for 32 of the most common legal and secondary sources, together with the core rules for footnotes, subsequent citations, tables of cases and legislation, and bibliographies.

The examples follow the principles of OSCOLA (4th edition), which most UK law schools use. Always check your module handbook for local variations. For a shorter overview of the basics, see our OSCOLA referencing simplified guide.

Note: book, article and website details in the secondary-source examples are illustrative. Case and legislation examples use real authorities to show the correct format.

What Is OSCOLA Referencing?

OSCOLA is a footnote citation system designed specifically for legal writing. Instead of putting references in brackets in the text, you place a superscript number after the relevant word or punctuation mark and give the citation in a footnote at the bottom of the page. At the end of your work, you usually include a table of cases, a table of legislation and a bibliography of secondary sources.

Core OSCOLA Rules at a Glance

Where to Put the Footnote Marker

Place the footnote number after the punctuation mark that follows the relevant word, phrase or sentence, unless it refers to a specific word, in which case it goes straight after that word. For example: The duty of care was famously described by Lord Atkin.¹ If you cite more than one source for the same point, separate them with semicolons in a single footnote.

Subsequent Citations, Ibid and Cross-References

After you have cited a source in full once, you can use a shorter form:

• Ibid — use when citing the same source as the immediately preceding footnote: Ibid 47.
• Cross-reference — use the author’s surname (or short case name) and the footnote number where the full citation appears: Smith (n 3) 50.
• Short case names — after the first full citation, you can refer to Donoghue or Miller in the text and footnotes.

Many law schools discourage overusing “ibid” in long pieces, so check your handbook.

OSCOLA Referencing Examples: Cases

1. UK case with a neutral citation

Footnote: R (Miller) v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union [2017] UKSC 5, [2018] AC 61 [50].
Bibliography / table: Listed in the table of cases without the pinpoint.
Give the neutral citation first, then the best law report. Pinpoint paragraphs in square brackets.

2. Older UK case without a neutral citation

Footnote: Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562 (HL) 580.
Bibliography / table: Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562 (HL)
Add the court in brackets where it is not obvious from the report. The final number is the pinpoint page.

3. Case reported by year and volume

Footnote: Case Name (Year) volume Report abbreviation first page.

Use round brackets when the year is not essential to finding the volume.

4. Unreported case

Footnote: Case Name [Year] EWHC 1234 (Ch).

For cases with only a neutral citation, the neutral citation is enough.

5. Case from the Court of Justice of the EU

Footnote: Case 26/62 NV Algemene Transport- en Expeditie Onderneming van Gend en Loos v Nederlandse Administratie der Belastingen [1963] ECR 1.

Short form after first citation: Van Gend en Loos (n 5).

6. European Court of Human Rights case

Footnote: Golder v United Kingdom (1979–80) 1 EHRR 524.

7. Case with a party name in brackets (judicial review)

Footnote: R (on the application of Name) v Defendant [Year] UKSC 00.

“R (Name)” is the accepted short form for judicial review cases.

8. Pinpointing a judge’s speech

Footnote: Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562 (HL) 580 (Lord Atkin).

Add the judge’s name in brackets after the pinpoint.

OSCOLA Referencing Examples: Legislation and Treaties

9. UK Act of Parliament

Footnote: Human Rights Act 1998, s 6(1).
Bibliography / table: Human Rights Act 1998
No full stop after “s”; use “ss” for sections and “sch” for schedules.

10. Act with schedule and paragraph

Footnote: Equality Act 2010, sch 1, para 2.
Bibliography / table: Equality Act 2010

11. Statutory instrument

Footnote: Working Time Regulations 1998, SI 1998/1833, reg 4.
Bibliography / table: Working Time Regulations 1998, SI 1998/1833

12. Bill before Parliament

Footnote: Title HC Bill (2025–26) [number], cl 3.

Use “cl” for clauses in Bills.

13. Scottish or Welsh legislation

Footnote: Title of Act (asp number) or Title (Wales) Act Year, s 1.

14. EU Regulation

Footnote: Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (General Data Protection Regulation) [2016] OJ L119/1, art 5.

After the first citation you may use the short name: GDPR, art 6.

15. EU Directive

Footnote: Directive number [Year] OJ L number/page, art.

16. International treaty

Footnote: Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (European Convention on Human Rights, as amended) (ECHR) art 8.

Commonly shortened to ECHR, art 8 after first use.

OSCOLA Referencing Examples: Secondary Sources

17. Book with one author

Footnote: Jane Smith, Principles of Contract Law (5th edn, Example University Press 2022) 45.
Bibliography / table: Smith J, Principles of Contract Law (5th edn, Example University Press 2022)
In the bibliography, surname comes first followed by initials, without full stops.

18. Book with two or three authors

Footnote: Jane Smith and Ali Khan, Tort Law in Context (Example Press 2021) 112.
Bibliography / table: Smith J and Khan A, Tort Law in Context (Example Press 2021)

19. Book with more than three authors

Footnote: Jane Smith and others, Public Law (4th edn, Example Press 2023) 9.
Bibliography / table: Smith J and others, Public Law (4th edn, Example Press 2023)

20. Edited book

Footnote: Ali Khan (ed), Perspectives on Criminal Justice (Example Press 2020).
Bibliography / table: Khan A (ed), Perspectives on Criminal Justice (Example Press 2020)

21. Chapter in an edited book

Footnote: Sarah Evans, ‘Consent and Autonomy’ in Ali Khan (ed), Perspectives on Criminal Justice (Example Press 2020) 67.
Bibliography / table: Evans S, ‘Consent and Autonomy’ in Khan A (ed), Perspectives on Criminal Justice (Example Press 2020)

22. Journal article (volume-based)

Footnote: Jane Smith, ‘Rethinking Duty of Care’ (2021) 137 Example Law Quarterly 245, 250.
Bibliography / table: Smith J, ‘Rethinking Duty of Care’ (2021) 137 Example Law Quarterly 245
Use the journal abbreviation if your handbook requires it.

23. Journal article (year-based)

Footnote: Ali Khan, ‘Proportionality in Public Law’ [2022] Example Public Law 33.
Bibliography / table: Khan A, ‘Proportionality in Public Law’ [2022] Example Public Law 33

24. Online journal article

Footnote: Sarah Evans, ‘Algorithmic Decision-Making and Fairness’ (2025) 4 Example Journal of Law and Technology accessed 12 November 2026.

25. Website

Footnote: Example Charity, ‘Legal Aid Explained’ (Example Charity, 3 March 2025) accessed 12 November 2026.

26. Blog post

Footnote: Jane Smith, ‘The Future of Judicial Review’ (Example Law Blog, 10 January 2026) accessed 12 November 2026.

27. Newspaper article

Footnote: Ali Khan, ‘Courts Backlog Reaches New High’ The Example Times (London, 4 February 2026) 7.

28. Law Commission report

Footnote: Law Commission, Title of Report (Law Com No 000, Year) para 2.10.

29. Command paper

Footnote: Department, Title (Cm 0000, Year) para 3.

30. Hansard

Footnote: HC Deb 3 February 1977, vol 925, col 973.

Use HL Deb for the House of Lords.

31. Thesis

Footnote: Sarah Evans, ‘Title of Thesis’ (DPhil thesis, University of Example 2021) 45.

32. Interview or personal communication

Footnote: Interview with Jane Smith, Solicitor (London, 5 March 2026).

OSCOLA Referencing Examples: Tricky Situations

Source with no author

Begin the citation with the title. For a website: ‘Title of Page’ (Website, date) <URL> accessed date. In the bibliography, list it alphabetically by the first significant word of the title.

Source with no date

Omit the date rather than writing “no date”, unless your handbook says otherwise, and always include the access date for online material.

Citing several authorities for one point

Separate them with semicolons in a single footnote, in chronological or logical order: Case A [2010] UKSC 1; Case B [2015] UKSC 2.

Citing a case quoted in a book

Wherever possible, find and cite the original case. If you cannot, make it clear that you are relying on the secondary source: Case Name [Year] Report page, as cited in Jane Smith, Title (edn, Publisher Year) pinpoint.

Quoting a judgment by paragraph

For cases with numbered paragraphs, pinpoint with square brackets: R (Miller) v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union [2017] UKSC 5, [2018] AC 61 [86].

Citing an explanatory note

Explanatory Notes to the Equality Act 2010, para 20.

Citing a parliamentary committee report

Committee name, Title of Report (HC Year–Year, number) para.

Citing a government press release

Department, ‘Title’ (Press release, date) <URL> accessed date.

OSCOLA in Law Dissertations

Law dissertations usually include hundreds of footnotes, so consistency matters more than ever. Set up a reference manager with an OSCOLA style early, keep a running list of authorities for your tables, and check pinpoints against the original reports before submission. Your tables of cases and legislation, plus the bibliography, normally appear after the main text and before any appendices. Many students lose marks not for wrong citations but for inconsistent ones — for example, alternating between “s.” and “s”, or between full and abbreviated journal titles.

Using OSCOLA Outside Law Degrees

Students in criminology, politics, business law modules and international relations sometimes need OSCOLA for legal sources only, while using Harvard for everything else. If your handbook allows a mixed approach, cite cases and legislation using the OSCOLA referencing examples above and follow your main style for books, journals and websites. Never mix footnotes and in-text citations for the same type of source.

Tools for OSCOLA Referencing

• Reference managers: Zotero, Mendeley and EndNote offer OSCOLA styles, but check case citations carefully because automated tools often miss neutral citations or pinpoints.
• Legal databases: Westlaw and Lexis show the preferred citations for cases and are the best place to confirm report details.
• legislation.gov.uk: the official source for UK statutes and statutory instruments.

OSCOLA Referencing Examples in an Essay Paragraph

Here is how OSCOLA footnotes look in a short passage of legal writing:

The modern law of negligence is generally traced to Lord Atkin’s “neighbour principle”.¹ Although later decisions refined the test for establishing a duty of care,² the Supreme Court has emphasised that the courts should develop the law incrementally by analogy with established categories.³ Academic commentators have questioned whether this approach provides sufficient certainty.⁴

¹ Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562 (HL) 580.
² Case Name [Year] AC 000 (HL).
³ Case Name [Year] UKSC 00 [21].
⁴ Jane Smith, ‘Rethinking Duty of Care’ (2021) 137 Example Law Quarterly 245, 250.

How to Format Tables of Cases, Legislation and the Bibliography

Table of cases

List cases alphabetically by the first significant word of the party name, without pinpoints. UK cases are usually listed first, followed by EU and international cases in separate sections if your handbook requires it.

Table of legislation

List primary legislation alphabetically, then secondary legislation, then EU and international instruments. Do not include section numbers.

Bibliography

List secondary sources alphabetically by author surname, with the surname first followed by initials (no full stops), and without pinpoints. Works with no author are listed by title, and corporate authors by organisation name.

Bibliography
Evans S, ‘Consent and Autonomy’ in Khan A (ed), Perspectives on Criminal Justice (Example Press 2020)
Khan A, ‘Proportionality in Public Law’ [2022] Example Public Law 33
Smith J, Principles of Contract Law (5th edn, Example University Press 2022)

Quotations in OSCOLA

• Short quotations (up to three lines) go in single quotation marks in the text.
• Longer quotations are indented without quotation marks.
• Always give a pinpoint reference in the footnote.
• Use square brackets for any words you add, and an ellipsis (…) for omitted words.

OSCOLA vs Harvard: Key Differences

If you take modules outside law, you may need Harvard instead — see these Harvard referencing examples.

Common OSCOLA Referencing Mistakes

• Adding full stops to abbreviations such as “s.” or “p.” — OSCOLA uses “s 6” and does not use “p” for pages.
• Forgetting the full stop at the end of each footnote.
• Missing pinpoints when quoting or relying on a specific passage.
• Using the wrong brackets around the year.
• Putting pinpoints in the bibliography or tables.
• Citing a website version of a case instead of the authoritative law report.
• Mixing OSCOLA footnotes with Harvard-style brackets.

OSCOLA Referencing Checklist

1. Every authority is cited in a footnote at the point you rely on it.
2. Each footnote ends with a full stop.
3. Cases include neutral citations where available, plus the best report.
4. Legislation includes the correct section, schedule or regulation.
5. Secondary sources include full author names in footnotes.
6. Subsequent citations use short forms, ibid or (n X) correctly.
7. Tables of cases and legislation and the bibliography are complete and alphabetical.
8. No full stops appear in abbreviations.

Need Help With Your Law Essay?

Accurate OSCOLA referencing is a core part of every law marking scheme. If you would like expert feedback on your argument, structure or referencing, our UK law specialists can help through our law essay help, law dissertation writing services and essay writing services. For more on writing at a high level, read our first-class university essay guide. The official OSCOLA guide is published by the University of Oxford Faculty of Law.

Frequently asked questions

What is an example of OSCOLA referencing?

A case example is Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562 (HL) 580. A statute example is Human Rights Act 1998, s 6(1). Both appear in footnotes ending with a full stop.

Does OSCOLA use footnotes or in-text citations?

OSCOLA uses footnotes, with tables of cases and legislation and a bibliography at the end of the work.

How do you reference a website in OSCOLA?

Author, ‘Title’ (Website name, date) <URL> accessed date — for example, Example Charity, ‘Legal Aid Explained’ (Example Charity, 3 March 2025) <URL> accessed 12 November 2026.

Do you need a bibliography in OSCOLA?

Most UK law schools require a bibliography for coursework and dissertations, often alongside tables of cases and legislation. Some short assignments only require footnotes, so check your instructions.

What does “n” mean in OSCOLA?

It means “note” and points readers to the footnote where the full citation appears, for example Smith (n 3) 50.

Always follow your university’s academic integrity policy. Use any support or sample material to understand and improve your own work.